


Fangs and Cold Weather

by KieraElieson



Series: More Than the Sum of Our Parts [4]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: But Mistakes Happen, Fluff and Angst, Gen, He’ll Be Back Soon, Sympathetic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Sympathetic Deceit Sanders, Temporary Character Death, They Both Try So Hard, like in chapter two
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-11
Updated: 2019-11-14
Packaged: 2021-01-27 16:37:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,196
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21395314
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KieraElieson/pseuds/KieraElieson
Summary: Deceit is mostly cold blooded. He also has fangs with venom. This is not always a good thing.When mistakes happen, as they always will, how can he fix the mess he blames on himself?A sequel to More Than the Sum of Our Parts.
Relationships: ALL PLATONIC, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Deceit Sanders
Series: More Than the Sum of Our Parts [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1537450
Comments: 35
Kudos: 220





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So the angst fairy attacked. I had never intended for anyone to die, but it happened anyway. I promise that I’ll write a super fluffy second chapter to make up for it.
> 
> So, for any that don’t want to read More Than the Sum of Our Parts, this is what you’ll need to know: Deceit is obviously a snake. He’s always cold, and smells things better if he sticks his tongue out. Since he tries not to use it, he’s never learned to regulate his venom, and if he bites something with his fangs, he will use the venom. His fangs are normally only slightly too long for typical canines, but when he feels threatened they lengthen. If sufficiently scared, he will bite. His venom acts as a truth serum for about five minutes, depending on the person, before making them fall asleep for roughly twenty four hours. He doesn’t need to eat as often, but when he does he eats a lot.

The light sides seemed to be trying to acce… tolerate Deceit more now. He had been officially allowed into their side of the mindscape, but that didn’t stop them from flinching every time they saw him. Patton had offered the sunspot to Deceit, but that didn’t disguise the displeasure on his face when he went into his room to find Deceit in it. Roman had promised not to pull his sword on him, but that didn’t stop his hand straying to the pommel. Logan nodded at Deceit to acknowledge his presence, but that didn’t mean he was willing to talk with him yet. Even Virgil had agreed to be civil, but really, that just meant he got better at avoiding Deceit. 

Deceit hated it. 

It had been better before, when he knew they all disliked him. Now, with all the promises that tasted so strongly of lies and half truths, the next move was placed on his shoulders. He had to be the one to decide whether he would try to get closer or pull away. And he hated it. 

Was this what had happened with Virgil? Had he been forced into this position as well? If he pulled back, he’d only be confirming the title of Disney villain they seemed all too ready to give him. But if he tried, really tried, and messed up, it would be even worse than that. 

And the worst part was that he actually wanted to try. He wanted to be accepted. To see Thomas without the forced roles standing between them. 

He knew it couldn’t happen. Thomas didn’t want to see him. Rarely even found him useful for anything but keeping the dark sides in check. And Morality sides even farther against him. No matter what Patton may think of Deceit as a side, the function of Morality would always despise the function of Deceit. 

But there was still a part of him that wanted it. Wanted the casual affection that Patton gave the other sides. 

Even if he knew he couldn’t. 

He had to be the strong one. The others all counted on him to be the strong one. The one to control and manipulate. If he gave into his weakness, even for something as attractive as the warm affection and acceptance, he’d be letting them all down. He’d be failing Thomas. 

But oh how he wanted to. 

  * •^*^••

Remus popped up in Deceit’s room. It was much warmer than the rest of the mindscape, mostly because of a heat lamp that was pointed directly at the bed. Deceit was a snake right now, curled up in the middle of a nest of blankets and pillows. 

It was winter, or rather, it ought to be, so Remus had made the mindscape cold. Cold enough to turn his fingers a beautiful shade of blue. Maybe they’d fall off! Wouldn’t that be fun! 

Deceit languidly raised his head to hiss at Remus. 

“Dee dee! I came to see if you would play in the snow with me. I can make it yellow, just like you!”

Deceit hissed. 

“Oh, come on! It’s fun!”

Deceit hissed again, his mouth opening slowly, as if he were an old, old man trying to threaten Remus with biting him. Remus wasn’t scared of Deceit’s bite, and even if he was, Deceit could barely move.

Remus scooped up Deceit and sunk out, appearing in the Imagination. Remus made the snow yellow as he had promised, and scooped out a hole in it. Like a snow grave. He laid on his back and looked up at the sky, which seemed to match the color his fingers had turned. Remus glanced over at Dee. They had barely played ten minutes, but he wouldn’t move any longer. 

“Fiiiine,” Remus whined. “I’ll take you back.”

Barely were they back inside when Remus felt a prick on his arm. Deceit’s eyes were still shut, but one of his fangs had barely punctured the skin.

“Dee dee! That’s not fair! I was already taking you back and everything! Now I have to figure out where to put you, or you’ll discorporate and be mad at me. And I have to find where to put myself, because discorporating won’t even be worth it if I have to be unconscious the whole time!” 

Remus sunk down and popped up in front of the door to the light side. Since Deceit was close to unconscious, this would be easier. He summoned his favorite drill, which still had congealed blood and bits of bone on it, and drilled a hole in the bottom of the door. Then he shoved Deceit’s head and part of his body through. The hole wasn’t big enough for the widest part of his body, not with as stiff as he was, but it was close enough. Remus could feel heat pouring out through the hole, burning his fingers. 

He went to his room, changing the temperature to be a normal--boring wintery temperature. More like 30 degrees than the -20 he had been keeping up all morning.

“All alone again,” Remus said, laying on top of the stuff covering his bed. “As always. Sorry, Dee dee…. I just wanted…..”

  * •^*^••

When Deceit came to, the first thing he noticed was that he felt both frozen and on fire. It took him several minutes to realize where he was, and that the drastic temperature difference was the reason for his pain. He struggled to pull himself through. 

The warmth of the light was side was welcome, but it was too much at once, and burned his nearly-frozen tail. He writhed against the floor, praying that no other side would happen to come by. 

Eventually he adjusted. He shifted back into his human form, collecting his dignity from where it had died on the floor. He adjusted his hat and shivered. 

He couldn’t leave the hole in the door, but it would use the rest of the scant energy he had to close it up. He compromised by leaning against the wall for several minutes before sealing it. 

He stumbled into the common room, hoping for a throw blanket or five. Instead, there was a fireplace, with a fire in it. The commons was also empty. He gasped, unconsciously letting out a happy hiss as his tongue flickered out. There was no lie. It wasn’t an illusion or a trap. 

He grabbed a decorative blanket from the back of the couch, swirled it around his shoulders, and sat down on the floor in front of the fire. 

Between the warmth on his face, and the mesmerizing movement of the fire, his eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and eventually slipped closed. 

  * •^*^••

They all stumbled inside, snow coated and panting. Roman snapped, and all the coats vanished, replaced by festive sweaters. The snow boots vanished with another snap, replaced by warm slippers. 

“I’m going to make us all some hot chocolate!” Patton said, his face red and happy. 

“I would be willing to assist,” Logan said, and despite his stiff words, he too seemed to have enjoyed the snowball fight. 

“Then you’ll help me set up the movie!” Roman said, draping his arm over Virgil’s shoulders, careful to be light enough that Virgil could shake him off if he wanted to. 

But Virgil smirked at him, “Only if I get to pick the first one.”

Roman grinned, “Within reason.” He walked into the living room only to jump nearly a foot in the air as he realized there was some dark personage sitting in front of the fire. “Holy—! It’s just the snake.”

Virgil had jumped away, and now came back around the couch. 

“Deceit, what are you doing?” He said, shaking his shoulder. 

Deceit blinked several times before looking up at Virgil. His face was shockingly open. “I think it’s pretty clear I wasn’t asleep.” He stretched, turning so that his back was now to the fire. 

Patton then came out of the kitchen, holding two steaming mugs and followed by Logan, also with two mugs. “Oh! I’ll have to make one more.”

“Yes, I will intrude on your evening. Please bother with that.” Deceit said, already standing and turning to leave. 

“You don’t have to leave, kiddo,” Patton insisted. 

“Thank you. But yes.” Deceit sank out. 

Roman looked around, they all felt a little off now. Patton handed out the hot chocolate, and they started the first movie. 

Once it was over, Patton stood up. “I still want to make him a hot chocolate.” He rushed to the kitchen and came back moments later with a large mug, steaming, and with a mound of marshmallows on top. “Logan, can you help me get this to him?”

“Certainly.” Logan accepted the cup and walked out. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever  _ wanted  _ to go into the dark side before,” Patton said musingly. 

“Can’t you?” Virgil asked. 

“I  _ can,  _ but it’s really difficult, and it doesn’t feel good. Logan can go over there almost as easily as Deceit, though.”

  * •^*^••

The instant Logan phased through the door, he felt the chill. It was nearly as cold in here as it had been outside. He walked around until he found the yellow door. 

Logan knocked, hoping Deceit would answer before the chocolate became cold. 

The door opened, revealing Deceit, who seemed smaller than usual, and his face was clouded, as if he were having a hard time recognizing Logan. 

“Patton wished me to give this to you,” Logan said, holding out the cup. 

Deceit accepted it, instantly curling his hands around it to absorb every bit of heat. “Would you make sure not to tell him I said thank you?”

“I will.” 

His mission complete, Logan should have returned to the commons, but something held him back. He knew that Deceit wouldn’t accept an invitation to join them, but perhaps there was something else. 

“If you want, I can ask Roman to make a place beside the commons, something heated. You could stay there for the time being. It’s absurdly cold down here.”

Deceit didn’t say anything, but the desire to say yes was so plain on his face that even Logan could see it. 

“I’ll ask him anyway. Whether or not you wish to take advantage of it, it will be there.” 

  * •^*^••

It had only taken as long as it took for the cup to cool after the chocolate was gone for Deceit to decide. 

He just barely poked his head around the edge of the stairwell. The light sides were crowded onto a couch, covered in blankets. Beyond them, there was an open doorway carved into the wall, draped with a gold blanket instead of a door. 

Deceit looped around, hoping not to disturb the others. Virgil turned his head halfway, and Deceit knew he was watching him in his periphery. He nodded, to acknowledge that he knew he was being watched, then quietly made his way to the blanket. 

The room was the size of a large closet. From the heat lamp on the ceiling came light and warmth, and as Deceit sat down in the pile of blankets, he realized that they were heated as well. The walls were black, with yellow stars in a regular pattern, and the blankets were bright yellow. 

Deceit dug himself into the pile and melted in the warmth. 

It was much later when he remembered that he still had to do his work. He could hear quiet talking and occasional giggling through the blanket. So it was still the same day. 

He sunk out, down into the dark side. Immediately the cold stabbed into him, hurting just as much as it chilled. He got the anti venom from his room and went to Remus’s.

Inside Remus’s room seemed even colder, and it was covered in blood. Guilt seeped into his mind as he realized that with all he’d been worried about his own situation, he’d been neglecting Remus. Remus always was at his worst and most destructive when he was lonely. 

Remus was laying on the pile of everything disgusting he liked to call a bed. His eyes were open, but his breath was almost nonexistent and he wasn’t even shivering, although all of his exposed skin was blue. 

Deceit felt for a pulse and was surprised at how cold his wrist was. Normally Remus was hotter than the other sides, but now he was colder than Deceit. He… he might not survive this one. 

Deceit used the anti venom, and Remus blinked. 

“Why… wa’... m’up?”

“You’re too cold,” Deceit said, trying to sit him up. 

Remus lolled his head to the side. “ ‘s hot.”

“No. Not it’s not, Remus. Listen, I need you to warm up. Can you put the temperature up?”

Remus limply lifted a hand, before dropping it. He shook his head. “S’ry.”

Deceit frowned. He wasn’t sure what to do. He couldn’t change the temperature on his own. He doubted, even if he managed to bring him, that Roman could control things down here. He couldn’t bring Remus to the light side, the shock from the rapid temperature would kill him. 

Remus smiled faintly. “Bye… dee…”

Deceit held Remus close. It was the only thing he had left to do. He should have come earlier. He should have come much earlier. 

“When you come back,” Deceit said. “Come find me first, ok?”

“ ‘kay,” Remus nodded. His face twisted, “ ‘s hot, dee.”

Deceit clenched his jaw as he felt Remus get lighter. He knew Remus didn’t care about discorporating, but that didn’t make it any easier to watch. Especially when it was his fault. Remus could have changed the temperature himself of Deceit hadn’t bitten him. He would have been fine. Mostly fine, anyway. 

Remus’s eyes closed. 

He began dissolving. Bright dust floating up and into oblivion. Deceit held on until the last of him was gone. It would be days before he reformed. 

Deceit went around to all of the other sides, ensuring that they were alright. Shortly after, the temperature started a slow climb, freed from Remus’s direct influence. 

It had been a long, long day. Deceit was all too ready to flop into his bed and shut out the world. 

  * •^*^••


	2. Chapter 2

Thomas heard the familiar sound of someone popping up in his living room. He glanced away from his pan and was surprised to see Deceit standing there. 

“Hi, Deceit. Did you need something?”

“Can I just leave for a bit?” Deceit said, his voice surprisingly normal, even raw. 

“Yeah, that’s fine. Is something wrong?”

Deceit slumped down at the table. “It won’t be over soon anyway.”

Thomas turned off the heat and split the food onto two plates. He sat down next to Deceit and handed one to him. “Do you want to talk about it?”

There was a long pause. “Yes.” Deceit said, shoveling a bite of the pasta into his mouth. “It isn’t good.”

The two ate mostly in silence. 

“Is there anything I can do to help?” Thomas asked, worried about what it could be that would get Deceit so down. 

Deceit looked up at him, his hand moved closer to Thomas, and his mouth opened, but then he retracted the hand, his mouth shut, and he looked back down. Thomas had seen this behavior several times with Virgil, and knew what it meant. Deceit did indeed think that there was something Thomas could do, but didn’t want to ask for it for some reason. 

“I mean it,” Thomas said. “I want to help you. I just don’t know how.”

Silence stretched out for several seconds. Deceit looked out from under the brim of his hat. He started to say something, but it seemed to stick in his throat. Then he said something else. “You couldn’t go sit on the couch.”

Thomas felt his eyebrow raise, wondering at how this could help. But he did it. Deceit handed him the remote, and then went to clear the table. Thomas realized that he fully intended to wash the dishes. He still wasn’t sure how this would help, but he put on a show that he guessed Deceit might enjoy. 

Since there were only two dishes and a pan, doing the dishes didn’t take any longer than fifteen minutes. 

Shortly after the water turned off, Thomas’s attention was drawn by a soft hiss. Deceit, as a snake, butted his head against Thomas’s knee, and then pulled back slightly, as if he were waiting for permission. 

Thomas leaned forward and held out his hand. Deceit slithered up Thomas’s arm and over his shoulders, looping back to put his head just under Thomas’s chin. Thomas reached up and rubbed a hand along the thick part of Deceit. He still didn’t know if snakes liked being petted, but based on previous experiences with Deceit, it seemed that he liked it. 

“Is this helping you feel any better?” Thomas asked. 

Deceit hissed softly, and Thomas felt him push his head up into his chin. He decided to take that as a yes. 

Thomas relaxed back against the couch, and just enjoyed the movie, feeling Deceit melt into him as he also relaxed. Eventually, he fell asleep. 

  * •^*^••

When Thomas woke up, it was to a much greater weight on him than he had remembered. He had laid down at some point during the night, and Deceit, now in his normal form, was laying half on top of him to avoid falling off the couch. Deceit’s hands were wrapped into fists, and held close to his chest, and his hat had fallen off onto the floor. Thomas felt like he was seeing a vulnerable part of Deceit, one that he hadn’t ever intended to show. 

Thomas breathed in deeply and yawned. Maybe he’d go back to sleep. 

There was a twitch from Deceit, and suddenly he was jumping back, nearly stumbling over the table, his eyes wide and panicked. 

“That— Nothing happened!”

Thomas felt a strong urge to tease Deceit, but he knew that that would only ruin the little trust Deceit had given him. “What? I don’t remember anything.”

“N-Nothing happened,” Deceit again insisted. 

“No, I agree with you, I can’t remember anything happening,” Thomas said, stretching. He sat up and yawned again. “Since we haven’t spent much time together, do you think you’d want to have breakfast with me?”

Deceit blinked. His face was so completely dumbfounded Thomas had a hard time keeping from laughing. 

“I wouldn’t enjoy that. Thank you.”

Thomas smiled. “Great! I’ll go ahead and make something.”

While he was cooking, Deceit sank out, and came back twenty minutes later, when the food was close to done. He was wearing new clothes, though they still looked the same, and had showered, if the smell of soap was anything to go by. He had put his hat back on, and was all smooth and polished again. Not quite the sneering villain he had been when he first began showing himself to Thomas, but not the open, hurting person of the night before. 

The breakfast went smoothly, but Thomas couldn’t help but feel as if he were eating with someone who was pretending to be a stranger. When they had finished, said that he had work to do and sides to take care of, and sunk out before Thomas could ask questions about either. 

  * •^*^••

It took two days for Remus to return, but the instant he did he was hurtling towards Deceit in a ball of energy. 

“Dee Dee! Dee Dee! Did you miss me?”

Deceit had warning from the yelling, but still nearly got bowled over when Remus launched himself into a hug. 

“No.”

“So what are we going to do now that I’m back?” Remus asked, wriggling all over with excitement. 

“Yes, because my name is Creativity, and I make the best games,” Deceit responded with a smirk. 

Remus paused only for half a second to think. “I want a hook!”

“For your hand, or fish?” Deceit asked. 

“Not  _ for  _ my hand, instead of my hand. I’ve always wanted to try it. We could cap it over the nub, or maybe connect it right to the bone!”

Deceit hated that idea, but he knew he couldn’t say that. “But that wouldn’t be a waste of a perfectly new hand. If you don’t wait until you’ve used it a while, it’ll be better then.”

Remus pouted, but thought for a bit longer. “What about if we went and fought a whole army of zombies! And then if I get bit, I’ll turn into a zombie, and I’ll get to—“

“Remus.” Deceit interrupted. “You haven’t only just come back. What if we picked something that results in certain harm?”

Remus pouted again. 

Deceit had one ace. Only one. It had never failed, but that could be because he only used it in a desperate situation. Now seemed like the time to use it. 

“I won’t go challenge Roman if you want.”

Remus jumped up and down. “Yes! I’ll make the battlefield immediately. What if the whole ground were jello? And what if I get to have his castle if I win? And I’ll make his army turn into zombies!”

Deceit smiled. “Write up the terms, and I won’t deliver them.”

Remus launched himself at Deceit again. “You’re the best, Dee Dee! And you’ll be on my side?”

“Never.”

“As a snake?”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

  * •^*^••

Deceit rapped on Roman’s door. 

When Roman answered, an eyebrow was already raised. Deceit only knocked like this for this reason. Most of the time, he’d rise up directly in the room, or knock softly, but challenges required a level of decorum. 

Deceit first gave a short bow, then raised his chin, looking Roman straight in the eyes. “The Duke formally declares war on the Prince.”

Roman’s eyes lit up, and he summoned his sword. 

“I have brought the terms of battle,” Deceit continued, handing Roman the paper. 

Roman snatched at it. “Wait here. I’ll write a response.”

He sat down, skimming quickly over the paper. He waved his hand, and his desk cleared. With a snap, Roman summoned a quill and paper. He wrote furiously, then folded and sealed the letter. 

“Tell my brother I’ll meet him in an hour!” Roman said, his voice at its most pompous and most excited. “Are you to be his second?”

Deceit nodded. 

“Then I’ll also bring a second.”

Deceit gave another short bow and left. 

  * •^*^••

Deceit had been informed that, in a match with seconds, which this battle had indeed turned out to be, the seconds were supposed to go out and meet first. 

The battlefield had become a compromise. It looked like a grassy field, with a large circle in the middle, and a short line in the middle of the circle, but as soon as Deceit stepped into the circle, the ground stopped being solid. It was stiff, ish, and bouncy. It took him several awkward steps to figure out how he was supposed to walk on it. 

At least, looking across, Virgil seemed to be having the same difficulties. 

Deceit walked to one side of the line. He had arrived sooner than Virgil, and spoke loudly. 

“Virgil! Strongest of all the sides. It’s truly a pleasure to do battle with you.”

Virgil hissed. “Yeah, well eff you too.”

Deceit continued smoothly as Virgil made his way to the other side of the line. “Yes, I can see exactly why Roman chose you to be his second, especially with the rules for the seconds.”

Virgil’s head popped up, his eyes clearly showing that he clearly wasn’t aware of the rules. That was good, since Deceit didn’t either. He could have broken open either of the letters he had carried, but honestly, it was better not to. Anything that happened in the Imagination could be reversed anyway. No need to worry needlessly. 

As soon as Virgil reached the other side of the line, the twins appeared at the edge of the circle, both running, and seemingly unimpeded by the strange ground. They both bounded across, causing the whole field to quiver. Deceit managed to keep his footing, but only barely. Virgil had finally figured out how to balance, and was less affected than Deceit was. 

Remus arrived first by half a second, slinging his arm over Deceit’s shoulders. “You’ve talked?”

Virgil scoffed. “Sort of.”

“And the conclusion?” Roman asked, his voice loud and formal, fully entrenched in his Prince persona. 

Deceit knew the answer both twins were waiting for. 

“Battle.”

Deceit immediately shifted and looped around Remus’s neck and shoulders, holding on tightly. 

As he expected, he was shaken around so much he couldn’t tell at all what was happening, other than the clanging of weapons, and the jerking around that Remus was doing. This was what usually happened for the first little bit of the fight. In a minute they would stop, and he’d be able to see things that weren’t blurs of motion. At that point, things typically got weird. 

When Remus sank into the ground up to his waist, Deceit was finally able to see what was going on. Both Roman and Remus were trying to affect the imagination, and currently at a brief stalemate, but Virgil was being surrounded by a thick black cloud. 

As soon as Roman let go of his hold over the ground, Remus went flying up into the air, almost knocking Deceit from his shoulders. Then the cloud around Virgil came flying toward them, and Deceit couldn’t see. 

“Dee, help me!” Remus said. 

Deceit wrapped himself around the arm that was holding the Morningstar, and pulled in the direction that he could sense the other sides were. Remus swung wildly, but in the general direction that Deceit was trying to point him to. 

“How can you see?!” Roman yelled. 

“Deceit can sense heat,” Virgil yelled back. 

“Even if he couldn’t,” Remus crowed. “I can still hear you!”

Deceit felt the arm jar as the Morningstar connected to something, but there wasn’t any cry of pain, so it probably wasn’t one of the sides. 

Suddenly there was a hand on his neck, tugging him away. Remus wouldn’t have done that, so Deceit felt no guilt in biting down on the hand. 

He had drained his venom before he had come into the imagination, so he knew that there wasn’t much going into whoever grabbed him, it shouldn’t last more than an hour or two. The hand, rather than letting go, only gripped tighter, and pulled him off of Remus’s arm. 

Deceit squirmed wildly. 

“Damn snake!” Roman said. And there was the truth. Just a bit longer then. 

“What?” Virgil asked, sounding farther away than Deceit would have guessed. He needed to get his sight back. 

“He bit me!”

Deceit was surprised, and worried, that he hadn’t heard anything from Remus. He could tell that he was still there, but why wasn’t he saying anything? 

Deceit thrashed. He shifted back into human form, wincing as the hand on his throat was now able to cut off his air. He struck out wildly, feeling very satisfied when his fist connected with flesh and Roman grunted, loosing the grip on Deceit’s throat. 

“What is blinding me?” Deceit demanded. 

“As if we’d ever—“ Virgil scoffed. 

“Shadows.” Roman said. 

“Remus! Make a light!”

Soon Deceit was blinking his eyes. The grass had turned a searing neon orange, and was glowing brightly, leaving no shadows. 

“That is  _ horrendous _ !” Roman protested, but then his hand fell away from Deceit completely, and he swayed back. “What—what is—?” He slumped to the ground. 

Almost instantly, Virgil had Deceit on the ground and his fist cocked back. “What did you do to him?!”

“He’ll be fine!” Deceit insisted. “There was only a little venom.”

“If you’re lying-“ Virgil threatened. 

Deceit looked around for Remus. It was unlike him to be so silent for so long. 

Then he spotted what couldn’t be anything other than Remus. It was a butt. On the ground. Deceit felt his face go slack with distaste. Roman had indeed planned well. Remus would never willingly shapeshift himself out of a form like that, but while in that form he was practically useless. 

Deceit, ignoring Virgil, tried to shapeshift Remus back to normal. It was easy for him to change his own shape, but much more difficult to change others. Before he could do it Virgil punched him in the face. 

“Oh, no you don’t!” Virgil said. 

Deceit glared at Virgil, shifting and trying to slither away, but Virgil was too fast, and already on top of him. After struggling fruitlessly, since Virgil knew enough to grab him at the back of his head, and he couldn’t bite him, he shifted back. 

“I don’t have anything—“ Deceit ducked away from another punch. “-against you.” He rolled, managing to get out from under Virgil. “Let’s stop until they wake up.” He suggested, motioning toward the two who were supposed to be fighting the battle. 

Virgil paused. “How am I supposed to know whether you’re tricking me or not?”

Deceit frowned. He didn’t know. “I’m not. It doesn’t break a rule for us to wait for them.”

“How am I supposed to know that? What are the rules, anyway?”

Deceit shrugged. “I didn’t see. All I know is that we can’t leave the circle until someone admits defeat. And… various tidbits about duels that Thomas knows. But you know those as well.”

Virgil frowned, but he dropped his fighting stance. “If you’re lying I’ll sic Patton on you.”

“Oh, the horror!”

They had to wait a good hour before Roman woke up. 

When they explained to him that they were sitting the rest of the fight out, he shifted Remus back to normal and the two went at it with fists and weapons, and soon, all manner of… things… weird imagination creatures and objects that they launched at each other. There was also a fair amount of shapeshifting going on. 

Thankfully, the twins made sure that no stray shots hit either Virgil or Deceit. 

Then Remus started calling down fire and blood and bladed weapons by the dozen, and Deceit let himself get ‘trapped’ in a box by Roman so he and Virgil could take Remus down. They somehow managed to knock him out, and then let Deceit out of the box. 

“We yield,” Deceit said, using the formal voice and bowing. “The territory is yours, Prince.” 

The earth trembled slightly as the boundary line of the imagination shifted, giving Roman one of Remus’s provinces. 

“I will warn you,” Deceit said, smirking, “That the town is currently under a zombie epidemic.”

“What?!” Roman exploded. 

Deceit waved, and sunk himself out with Remus. 

  * •^*^••

“Did you not enjoy yourself?” Deceit asked. 

“I got to be a butt.” Remus replied. 

Deceit sighed. 

“And I got to fight with three other people.” Remus added. He wriggled underneath his blankets, and Deceit did  _ not  _ want to know why. 

“Yes,” Deceit said, “though I’m very sure why I bothered.”

“Because I died. You always get all clingy when I die. I should do it more often.”

Deceit narrowed his eyes. “Please do. I’m staying.”

Just before he closed the door though, he heard a “Thanks.” from inside. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully this satisfies the fluff requirements. :)
> 
> Leave a comment if you enjoyed the work, or if you have a prompt for this universe!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please comment and Subscribe if you want to be informed of future installments to the series. 
> 
> If you enjoyed, drop me a smiley in the comments! :)


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